Acting in a play, movie or short? Looking to put together a killer Charlie Sheen costume for Halloween? No matter the reasoning, an "on-drugs" costume is a good excuse to get a little weird and wacky, and playing these roles convincingly will greatly increase your range as an actor. Note, however, that these are broad, often stereotypical generalizations meant to be used as a guide for your own unique spin.

Steps

Method1

Looking Like you Are High

1

Rub your eyes with your fingers, agitating them slightly to make them appear red. This is the classic "stoner" gaze. Smoking causes the veins in your eyes to expand, which makes them much more visible. This causes the well-known red eye in stoners.

You can also rub some freshly cut onion or peppermint extract under your eyes to get the tears flowing, which causes red eye.

Relax your face and body muscles, letting them droop and feel slack. Your eyelids and lips will fall lightly to the floor, as if half asleep. Let yourself sink into the chair, or slump slightly whenever you're standing. You want to be totally relaxed.

If you find yourself staring for a long time into nothing, body barely moving, then you're crushing it.

3

Move slowly and laconically. You're not in a hurry, man. Keep the hustle to a minimum, really only moving when it is most necessary. High-guys & gals rarely feel compelled to do things that aren't strictly necessary, and neither should you. When you do move, take your time.

Try to flow through your movements, like the pictures of grooving hippies used in cartoons and old videos.[2]

4

Talk in a low, gravelly voice. Imagine that your throat and mouth are bone dry, as many people who smoke regularly can attest. Drop your voice into a low, bass-y register and scratch out the words a bit.

5

Keep munching on small snacks. A bag of chips or a box of Oreos is the perfect prop for the high-guy. Aim for regular, unceasing eating, which is why bagged chips and pretzels are often your best bet. The "munchies" generally aim for salty or sweet foods, and some stoners find them uncontrollable. Well-placed, constant eating will help sell the part well.[3]

Method2

Looking Like You're On Psychedelics

1

Spend a long, long time looking at things with a sense of wonder. Tripping causes many users to see patterns, new colors, and even objects and people appear out of everyday life, making the entire world a fascinating playground. The idea of seeing the world as if for the first time, astonished by the shifting things around you, is key to playing the psychedelic user.

Keep your eyes wide open, taking in as many sights as possible.

Curiosity is your guiding principle.

2

Giggle often, but keep it to yourself. There is rarely something funny happening, but a tripper will find the humor. Usually, this sort of laughter just kind of bubbles up in trippers as the result of a cool sight, strange new texture, or completely random, untraceable thought.

3

Touch a lot of things, rubbing them to enjoy the variety of textures. Psychedelics tend to be sensory overload, and touch is one of the most commonly enjoyed. Note, however, that trippers are rarely zoned into one sense at once. The thing you're stroking is likely changing color or visualizes as well, molding under your hand.

Again, the sense of wonder is key to selling the performance. You don't have to explain what you see -- just be entranced by it.[4]

4

Get deep and philosophical about our shared experience and place in the universe. People who trip are rarely selfish -- they're too out-there to be self-absorbed. Instead, they often "see" connections between everyone, and every living thing, that sober people don't. When they talk, trippers are often speaking on a "higher plane" that doesn't usually make sense for the people who aren't on the same ride:

A long rant about the beauty and connection between you and the earth would not be out of place.

Stopping halfway through a thought, as if taken by an incredible and inexplicable new truth, can help if you're running out of philosophical thoughts to improvise.

5

Consider throwing a fake "bad trip," complete with a mental breakdown, if you're a true actor. Want to really go for broke on your fake trip? Make it a bad one! You'll need to be convincingly freaked out, and you'll need a point of fixation -- either an object that has "transformed" into a demon or an imaginary space that you claim is "filled with horrible energy." Bad trips are characterized by:

Wide-eyed fear

Fixation on a real or imagined worry, stress, or terror

Sweating, nervously moving.

Nausea

Desire to be anywhere but here

Inability to move (paralyzed by fear)

Method3

Looking Like You're On "Uppers" (Cocaine, Amphetamines, etc.)

1

Talk as much as you possibly can. People might not really enjoy your company, but such is the burden of acting. Motor-mouth syndrome commonly besets those using high-energy drugs like cocaine, as the thoughts spill out so fast the user can't get them up fast enough. It doesn't matter what you're saying, just keep talking.

2

Resist the urge to stand still. Tap your fingers and feet. Get up and move around every few minutes. Let your eyes dart back and forth across the room uncontrollably. You want to feel like there is an enormous reserve of energy inside of you that is bursting at the seams, powering you like the energizer bunny.

Many cocaine users even report that they breath faster than normal.

3

Wipe your nose frequently. If you're faking drug inhalation, then you'll be scratching at your nose and wiping away excess snot for the majority of the night.

4

Move into irritability as the night moves on. When all of your energy comes from drugs, you can quickly go from restless to agitated. You might snap easily, be prone to anger, or just start acting uncomfortable and squirmy. This is often showcased by extreme mood swings, which become more noticeable with higher doses and longer highs.[5]

5

"Crash" into a low-energy mess if you don't "re-up" during the acting job. Uppers don't tend to last long, instead sapping the user of all their energy and leaving them far, far more depressed than when they began. Cocaine, for reference, usually only lasts about 20 minutes.[6]

Sleepiness, irritability, and lethargy are common in the crashing phase.

Method4

Looking Like You're On "Downers" (Opiates)

1

Act like a sleepy, happy baby, talking little and smiling sleepily. This is most common dangerous and powerful drugs like heroin. Downers, like opiates, usually leave people in a happy stupor, unable and unwilling to move off the couch they're on. They often squirm around sensually like a baby in blankets, getting comfortable and enjoying every single second of it.

2

Lurch into wide-eyed happiness right after "taking" the drug, then fade into sleepiness. Watch Ewan McGregor's masterful performance as a heroin addict in Trainspotting to see how quick this shift can be. Opiates often hit hard, bringing a wave of euphoria, before putting the user into a mellow, sleepy, and often useless state.[7]

3

Let your words and actions drift off into nothing. Most opiate users have their heads blissfully in the clouds. They may start a thought, but finishing it isn't really important. Ask someone's attention, but don't have anything to say when they turn to you. Keep your voice low and quiet.

4

Drift off regularly, either by falling asleep or simply zoning out into oblivion. The overall idea is to remain stuck in the clouds, unable to pin down your thoughts. More often than not, this leads to literally falling asleep, your head lolling up in surprise slightly every so often, as if just waking up.[8]

5

Scratch at yourself regularly, as itchiness is often a side-effect of opiates. Again, this is particularly true of heroin, but drugs like Oxycontin are actually the same type of compound, just slightly weaker. Scratch on your forearms, but don't make a big deal of it. This is just another uncontrollable tic, not some dedicated urge.[9]

If you don't have anything to worry about (for example: the teachers thinking you are a real drug-user, thus affecting your grades) then everything is okay. Just make sure that you let everyone know you are just joking.

How do I fake a years-long heroin addiction so I can mess with my grandma when she comes to visit?

Community Answer

You should probably not do that. It's not really that funny, and it's kind of a waste of time. If you really want to play such a mean prank, read the article. And may the karma from such a silly trick treat you in a balanced way.

Tips

Try to be more subtle than you think. The steps above are the extremes of behavior, but most real drug users generally exhibit much less pronounced versions of the above. Consider how "high" your character really is in the scene.

If you want to play a meth addict, you can use makeup to create scabs on your skin and paint your teeth gross colors.

Warnings

Avoid doing this in public; you might land into trouble or get questioning looks.

To look like you’re high on drugs, start by rubbing your eyes with your fingertips to make them bloodshot like you’ve just smoked a joint. Then, relax all of your muscles and let your eyelids droop as if you’re about to fall asleep. If you’re sitting down, slump back in the chair as if you’re really relaxed. When you move, do so slowly and lazily like the air’s made of honey or syrup. You should also speak in a low, gravelly voice to make it sound like your throat is dry from smoking. For more tips, including how to look like you’re on psychedelics and amphetamines, read on!

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